5 Great Reasons To Harness Solar Power

Very simply put, ‘Solar energy’ is energy that is derived from the sun.

Our sun is an abundant source of energy; it gives off heat and light.

The sun has been revered by several cultures of the past and even by a few cultures still present today.

Solar energy usage has grown dramatically over the last few years. How does new technology better harness the sun’s power?

 

The reasons for using its solar energy are numerous.

1. It’s free
   Every morning with each dawn, the solar energy released by the sun comes filtered through our atmosphere providing light and helping to radiate heat. This has been happening for millions of years yet it is only recently that we have begun to capitalize on this abundant source of almost infinite power. In the past the Greeks and the Egyptians have been known to harness the power of the sun to heat whatever they wished to by concentrating its radiation.
2. It’s non-polluting
   The energy from the sun is clean and free of any pollutants; unlike various sources of energy present today like petroleum or organic fuels that leave back residues and often leave back harmful gases when utilized to create energy.
3. Extremely reliable
   The sun has been burning for roughly four and a half billion years now and is likely to burn on for another four to five billion years to come. That’s definitely more than our lifetimes and certainly more than several generations of the future. Assuming the sun is shining brightly, you can harness the energy of the sun to either store it away or utilize its energy in a different way.
4. Limitless
   There is no restriction on how much energy we can use from the sun. Apparently, the amount of energy that comes from the sun every few minutes if successfully harnessed can power the entire United States of America for a whole year. If we could harness the immense energy of the sun we would be able to solve all the worlds’ energy problems.
5. Technology
   New technology is being developed to better harness the sun’s power

For us to be able to actually harness the power of the sun we have to be able to manipulate, focus and store the sun’s energy. While this may seem simple it is easier said than done; So far we have managed to develop three partially successful means of collecting solar energy.

1. The Reflection Method – Mirrors / Parabola.
   The reflection method is based on the concentration of the sun’s rays through a single or a set of mirrors onto one point and then utilizing the concentrated heat energy that is produced for out need. A parabolic mirror much like a dish antenna can be used to capture the sun’s rays and focus them on a single point.
2. The radiation method.
   This is the principle behind the solar water heaters. Painted black pipes sandwiched between two layers of glass, have water inside them that is heated thanks to the rays of the sun.
3. Solar panels.
   A more recent invention the ‘solar cell’ is composed of treated silicon crystals, which when hit by the rays of the sun knock electrons out of their orbits and thereby create a void that needs to be filled by electrons from the other silicon crystals, this creates an imbalance of electrons and hence a flow of current which can be either immediately utilized or else stored away in a rechargeable battery.